The present invention relates to golf ball washers and more particularly to a kit for replacing the head of existing golf ball washers with a more sanitary and environmentally-friendly cleaning mechanism.
As shown most clearly in FIG. 1, popular current golf ball washers 1 comprise a top portion 2, including an associated heavy-brush assembly 3 (FIG. 2A), which are respectively positioned on top and inside a “head” 4 which typically contains water (not shown). See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,807,037 (Garske), which is also incorporated by reference herein. To wash a golf ball (not shown), a gripping knob 3A (at the upper end of the heavy brush assembly 3) is pulled upward, the dirty golf ball inserted in the brush assembly 3, and then the brush assembly 3 with the golf ball are “aggressively” reciprocated up and down to “clean” the dirty golf ball through repeated reciprocations by the golfer, until the golf ball is deemed clean. The golfer can then dry off the ball using the towels 5 hanging on either side of the post 6 supported on a base 7.
However, this design has several inherent flaws: (1) the water gets progressively more dirty and filthy with each use; (2) sunlight, warmth and water cause bacteria growth which often causes the water to become increasingly foul-smelling and germ-concentrated; (3) this bacteria often lingers on a golfer's hands which can be transferred to food or other people, putting everyone at risk for illness; (4) the many parts often become rusty, break and need replacing; (5) because the water becomes progressively more dirty and foul-smelling with every use, loss of water due to splashing, and often mechanical break downs, these conventional ball washers need constant attention for refilling, cleaning and mechanical repair; and (5) the only golf-related item that can be cleaned using this design is a golf ball; no other golf related equipment can be cleaned with a conventional cleaning mechanism (other than with the towels 5).
Thus, there remains a need for a golf ball cleaning mechanism that can be used with these conventional golf ball washers but which do not suffer from the above-identified problems and wherein this cleaning mechanism can be easily installed for a variety of differently-shaped heads of these conventional golf ball washers.
All references cited herein are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.